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Project Gotham Racing (Xbox)
Whether it's Metropolis or Gotham, Bizarre Creations makes unique and fun-filled racing games.
By - Raymond "Psylancer" Padilla
The developer of Metropolis Street Racer (MSR), a fine racing game for the Dreamcast, is making its Xbox debut with Project Gotham Racing (PGR). MSR was known for adding a unique twist to driving games by emphasizing street racing and style. Like its predecessor, PGR offers accurate physics, tight control, and the novel "kudos" system. Its visuals benefit from the Xbox's graphics prowess, but not to the extent we would have liked. Still, the game is decidedly different from the competition and is quite entertaining… to a point.
Racing in PGR centers around the kudos system, which rewards stylish driving. Kudos points can be earned by sustaining slides, catching air, riding on two wheels, and passing other drivers. Big scores can be achieved by chaining these actions together for combinations. There is a brief delay after performing a trick or chain, and if you hit a wall during the delay, your points are negated. Clean driving is also rewarded; if you do not hit any walls or pylons between each checkpoint you're awarded a clean-driving bonus.
One of the biggest complaints about MSR is that the kudos system was too difficult. Thankfully, kudos points are easier to earn in PGR, mostly because poor driving isn't as harsh a detriment to your score. The system makes driving interesting since you must find a balance between finishing the race as fast as possible and executing time-sapping tricks for kudos points.
There are five game modes: quick race, arcade race, kudos challenge, time attack, and multiplayer. The last two modes are fairly self explanatory; time attack has you establish and try to beat personal-best times on each track while multiplayer pits up to four players in split-screen racing action. The bulk of the game lies in the first three modes.
The best way to start the game is in kudos challenge mode. These 12 levels feature nine different challenge types where you can earn plenty of kudos points enabling you to unlock better vehicles. Kudos challenges include street races -- overtake challenges where you must pass a certain number of cars in a limited time, total laps timed, single hot laps, and more. To reach the next level of challenges you must achieve a Bronze medal in all of the races.
Arcade races feature pylons set up throughout the tracks. You must pass through the pylons and earn a set amount of kudos points in a limited time to progress. Likewise, the next level is unlocked by placing at least Bronze in all the races. Finally, quick races pit you against five computer-controlled drivers. You must place at least third in each race to progress. Even though multiplayer mode is very ordinary and time attack seems like an afterthought, the other three modes provide plenty of variety to keep things interesting for a long time.
Next: Modes...
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